VERO BEACH — A Vero Beach man was committed to a mental hospital after calling police and telling an officer he intended to kill Mayor Craig Fletcher.
As Jason Kozdra was led away in handcuffs April 10, police say he repeated the threat and then maintained that as a sovereign citizen it was his “duty” to “kill government officials and police officers.”
Kozdra made a name for himself recently when his wife, Karen, ran for one of the open seats on the Vero Beach City Council last fall and he proceeded to get arrested while he was serving as her campaign treasurer. Kozdra has a long history of arrests both in and out of state.
Fletcher wasn’t taking the threat lightly. On Thursday, the mayor handed Vero Beach 32963 a packet of papers and informed the press that someone was gunning for him.
“My whole life has changed,” he said.
Police reports indicated that Kozdra had been drinking when he threatened the mayor.
Less than two weeks before Kozdra was committed to mental hospital, he filed paperwork in federal court claiming that Fletcher had deprived him of his First Amendment right to free speech. Fletcher was recently served with the papers on the case.
Kozdra claims that his rights were violated in April 2011 when following a city council meeting he chided the city council for not hiring from within when it hired City Manager Jim O’Connor.
Following the meeting, Fletcher claims that Kozdra followed him out in front of City Hall and grabbed him.
Fletcher told police about Kozdra and they subsequently issued an alert to other members of city council.
Kozdra claims he did not touch Fletcher. According to his suit, when Fletcher went to police to report the matter, those actions subsequently were done with the intent to censor, intimidate and silence him.
Kozdra is asking for legal fees and punitive and compensatory damages.
